Post: #1

I want to apply for a job with a big state-owned company. They have an opening in their Colombian office in Bogota and landing that job would be like hitting a gold mine. Not only am I yearning to leave Germany, but the money is pretty good, the job sounds fun and putting the company's name on my resume will be a door opener in the future.

My question is whether or not I should phone/email the Colombian office directly or follow the official instructions and apply using their website and going through HR first.

I'm qualified for the job and think that I might have a shot either way, but the competition will be stiff. I estimate that there will be hundreds of other applicants and hence, skipping HR seems like a good idea.
On the other hand, they explicitly say that you have to apply via their homepage and otherwise won't consider your application. What do you think?

Post: #2

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*Caveat* - Colombians might not be well represented on Linkedin. I have no idea.

This worked for a friend of mine in Brazil though.

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Evade both of your problems by developing a contact on Linkedin externally.


Find a manager who seems to have an international background who states on his profile that he would be interested in hearing from potential applicants. I think "(person) is willing to be contacted for (job opportunities / job inquiries / getting back in touch / business proposal / etc)

Get in contact with this person by sending a direct inmail. Give this person a background on who you are, that you found out about that position you are interested in, and that you'd love to learn more about their company and operations in an informational skype interview.

This way you are:

1. Technically not applying at all - it's an informational interview to learn more before you apply "for real" (Considering that this is an international move, such a request is justifiable)

2. Developing an internal contact with whom you'll speak who can help you leapfrog the human resources barriers

3. Developing internal contact who, if he agrees to skype with you and decides he likes you, can go ahead and refer you internally. That way HR is receiving the CV from him, and not from an unsolicited application on the web.

Unless he explicitly says so, HR is not going to know whether he's known you for 10 years or for 10 days. The fact is that your application will get placed into the "internal referrals" pile.

This way you do not piss off HR by trying to explicitly break the rules. You also get the benefit of hacking the system by developing an internal contact in a low-risk manner (although it may cost you some money to buy that inmail credit or sign up for multiple inmail credits).

If that position exists in Bogota then similar companies/SOEs in Bogota probably also have some positions available. You should snoop around and compile a list of 5-10 companies that you are interested in with similar profiles. Purchase one month's worth of inmails on linkedin and clone this strategy.

You can line up 5-10 skype interviews over the course of the week to hedge your bets.

You could thus potentially have 3-5 final round interviews set up Bogota with companies in this field before you even book a flight.

Post: #3

Thanks YMG, good stuff. Problem is that the official deadline ends in a week...Either way, I'll use that method in the future. If I land a job that way, I'll let you know.

Post: #4

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I suppose you could do both simultaneously.

Apply directly and then also do this linkedin strategy.

You really have nothing to lose. Even if the "official deadline" passes, if someone internally recommends someone for a posting then they will be put into the running by default. It won't hurt by that point if they find out that you applied to the position directly in the correct/requested manner.

My two cents.

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